was too sharp set to be
particular, and so set to on it at once and gobbled away till he had
finished it. He was wondering whether he should have to sleep on the
bare ground, when the same man appeared with a bundle of Indian corn and
other leaves, and threw them down in the corner, making a sign that they
were to serve him as his bed. "Thank you, old fellow, I might go
farther and fare worse." His spirits rose somewhat, for he judged
rightly that his captors would not take so much trouble about him had
they intended to murder him. He did not forget how mercifully his life
had been preserved during the day, and he offered up his thanks on high
before he threw himself on his bed of leaves to go to sleep.

He slept as soundly as a top all night, and when he awoke he could
scarcely remember what had occurred during the previous day. Before
long his former attendant appeared and placed another bowl of farina
before him. "If they were cannibals, I might have some suspicions of
their intentions," he said to himself; "they don't propose to eat me;
but I know that I shall grow enormously fat if I go on long ramming down
such stuff as this." However, as he was very hungry, he did swallow the
whole of it. Hours passed away; no one else came near him. He fully
expected to find the town attacked by the English, and waited
impatiently to hear the sounds of the commencement of the strife; but,
except that occasionally he heard tom-toms beating at a distance, and a
few shots fired, everything in the town was quiet. It was sometime in
the afternoon when two armed blacks appeared, and marched Jack out of
his prison up to the king's palace. The king scarcely took any notice
of him as he entered the reception-room. Soon after Don Diogo appeared.

"Will they give up the slaves?" asked the king.

"Not a bit of it," answered Don Diogo. "They say that if we kill that
lad, then they will kill six times as many people of ours."

"That can't be helped," observed the king. "The people were born to be
killed."

"Certainly," answered Don Diogo; "but there are some Spaniards among
them, and I require their services."

"But is it not possible that they may come and burn my town? I have no
wish for that to happen, even for your sake, my friend," said the king.

"Shoot the midshipman if they do," answered Don Diogo, turning a not
very pleasant glance at Jack. "At present, however, they do not seem
disposed to attack us. We have